REAL PEOPLE, REAL ISSUES

August 28, 2008

A Taste of Witty, Lean Triumphalism

“My President Is Black.” So read the slogan adorning the oversize
T-shirts, also featuring a black-and-silver American flag, worn by most
of Young Jeezy’s crew on Tuesday night at the Blender Theater at
Gramercy. After performing “My President” from “The Recession,” due out
next week, Young Jeezy expanded on the theme, musing on his role models
(or dream ticket?): “In my book it’s Tupac, then it’s Barack Obama.” “The Recession” (Def Jam), his third album, could theoretically
satisfy supporters of both. A return to the triumphalism of his 2005
debut, “Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101,” it’s lean, tough and
coarse. His templates, topical (cocaine) and structural (simple,
punctuated with exclamations), were once narrow, but he has matured.
The new album may not be as consistently thrilling as the first, but
it’s more consistently interesting. Not all of Young Jeezy’s
newfound nuance made it to the stage here, but it didn’t matter. He
played up his most natural gift, muscle, often performing just the
first verse and hook of a song, as if he were trying to satisfy a rowdy
club crowd or just wanted to cut to the chase. Still, “Trap Star,”
“Bottom of the Map,” “Go Crazy,” “Soul Survivor”: great first 90
seconds, all. Even relative obscurities benefited from this treatment.
On the remix of Fabo’s “Geek’d Up” he didn’t bother to contain his own
sly wit, and he began “Trap or Die,” from the mixtape of the same name,
whispering a cappella and smiling appreciatively when the crowd rapped
along.After his blustery verse from the remix of Shawty Lo’s “Dey Know,”
Young Jeezy paused for some inspirational words, giving his childhood
address in Atlanta — “the middle of the projects,” he said — and
remarking how far he had come. (His motivational appeal isn’t limited to thugs; Michael Phelps
recently revealed he listened to Young Jeezy to get pumped up before
swim meets. Repaying the favor, the rapper called Mr. Phelps “the Young
Jeezy of the swim world.”) SOURCE:NYT.COM

Comments

A Taste of Witty, Lean Triumphalism

“My President Is Black.” So read the slogan adorning the oversize
T-shirts, also featuring a black-and-silver American flag, worn by most
of Young Jeezy’s crew on Tuesday night at the Blender Theater at
Gramercy. After performing “My President” from “The Recession,” due out
next week, Young Jeezy expanded on the theme, musing on his role models
(or dream ticket?): “In my book it’s Tupac, then it’s Barack Obama.” “The Recession” (Def Jam), his third album, could theoretically
satisfy supporters of both. A return to the triumphalism of his 2005
debut, “Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101,” it’s lean, tough and
coarse. His templates, topical (cocaine) and structural (simple,
punctuated with exclamations), were once narrow, but he has matured.
The new album may not be as consistently thrilling as the first, but
it’s more consistently interesting. Not all of Young Jeezy’s
newfound nuance made it to the stage here, but it didn’t matter. He
played up his most natural gift, muscle, often performing just the
first verse and hook of a song, as if he were trying to satisfy a rowdy
club crowd or just wanted to cut to the chase. Still, “Trap Star,”
“Bottom of the Map,” “Go Crazy,” “Soul Survivor”: great first 90
seconds, all. Even relative obscurities benefited from this treatment.
On the remix of Fabo’s “Geek’d Up” he didn’t bother to contain his own
sly wit, and he began “Trap or Die,” from the mixtape of the same name,
whispering a cappella and smiling appreciatively when the crowd rapped
along.After his blustery verse from the remix of Shawty Lo’s “Dey Know,”
Young Jeezy paused for some inspirational words, giving his childhood
address in Atlanta — “the middle of the projects,” he said — and
remarking how far he had come. (His motivational appeal isn’t limited to thugs; Michael Phelps
recently revealed he listened to Young Jeezy to get pumped up before
swim meets. Repaying the favor, the rapper called Mr. Phelps “the Young
Jeezy of the swim world.”) SOURCE:NYT.COM

September 2012

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